None of these rankings are perfect, obviously, but ranking pitchers is, for me, the most difficult task of draft season. Two big reasons for this: 1) pitching is inherently a difficult position for me to evaluate because pitching makes no sense to me (I like hitting, what can I say?), and 2) I do the pitchers last so there’s some degree of last minute, sleep deprived reasoning (or lack thereof) that impedes quality decision-making. Sometimes I look back at a list and I can’t believe I had a guy where I had them, almost always much lower than I would have guessed. But the draft is in but a few hours, so on with the show…

1. If your favorite player is missing, then chances are a lot higher it was a copy/paste fail and not my complete and utter lack of baseball knowledge. I mean, sure, it could still be the latter, but if there’s somebody obvious that I’ve ignored, please give a gentle reminder in the comments or via email (robozga at gmail dot com). It’s also possible I mentally shifted a guy’s position in my head, so don’t rule out your player suddenly popping up on another position list.

2. Players designated as FAVORITEs were given that tag prior to the season, or, in some cases, upon enrolling in college. In other words, just because a guy is a FAVORITE doesn’t mean he’s automatically guaranteed a high placement on the list. I’m stubborn about which players I like, true, but I’m also quite cognizant of the fact prospect status is fluid.

3. Final opinions are all mine, but information has been culled from a variety of sources. Like anybody likely reading this site, I’m an avid follower of all things Baseball America and Perfect Game. Seriously, if you are into the draft/prospects at all, I highly recommend getting subscriptions to both sites. I also have a small but trustworthy network of friends in the game I occasionally call upon for information on prospects, especially those off the beaten path. Consider the little scouting notes section on each player a synthesis on what I’ve read, heard, and seen about each player. I’m in no way an expert and literally nothing I write, positively or negatively, influences what pro teams actually do on draft day. I’m just a baseball loving guy who has taken a hobby way, way, way too far.

4. I’m happy to answer any and all questions I can over email or in the comments. Also, for the sake of my already waning sanity, I didn’t include everything I had on every player — you’ll see some blank spots sprinkled throughout — so please don’t hesitate to ask if there’s something about a specific guy you want answered.

5. There’s a little more science in scouting college prospects than when it comes to evaluating high school guys. This is all art and totally up to interpretation. The rankings are rankings because they are…rankings (I say it every year, but next year I want to do tiers), but that doesn’t mean Prospect #3 is leaps and bounds better than Prospect #15. I’m not trying to preempt any criticism of the list or anything, just getting it out there that nothing I write should be taken as more than the semi-educated opinions of what some weird guy on the internet thinks about a bunch of ballplayers. Cool? Cool. Here we go…

2. LHP/OF Trey Ball (New Castle HS, Indiana): 87-91 FB, 92-94 peak; advanced 78-84 CU with good deception, plus upside; 74-78 CB was viewed as work in progress, flashes plus and mostly above-average by now; good 79-85 SL; good athlete; well above-average speed; CF range; quick bat; great instincts in field and on bases; originally reminded me of Jake Cave but he’s blown right by that this spring; PG has used Von Hayes as a hitter; have also heard lefty Taylor Jungmann; plus arm; not much present power, but it is in there; BA has used Chris Sale and Dom Brown, I love both; 6-6, 180 pounds